


The Question

by ShadowPhoenixRider



Series: Walk on the Wild Side - Miscellanous Stories [3]
Category: World of Warcraft
Genre: Awkwardness, Dialogue Heavy, F/M, Khadgar putting his foot in it as usual, Language, World of Warcraft: Legion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-04-05 16:50:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14048607
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShadowPhoenixRider/pseuds/ShadowPhoenixRider
Summary: Sometimes a question you think is perfectly innocent turns out not to be. Khadgar finds this out the hard way.





	The Question

**Author's Note:**

> A canonical little Draggka/Khadgar thing I got the urge to write sometime ago. Enjoy!

Khadgar thought it was an innocuous little question. One that seemed so simple and innocent.

It drifted to the forefront of his mind as he laid in bed, warm and relaxed and with the shape of his lover Draggka curled up against his body under the covers. It was a lazy morning, the Legion’s invasion for once seemingly a thousand leagues away, and the mage was content to stay like this all day. And perhaps forever, if he could get away with it. Not only as a break from his duties, but also to stretch out the time he had with Draggka. It wasn’t often that they could have times like this, and so Khadgar hadn’t had time to appreciate the simple joy of holding her and basking in her company.

The troll had been resting on his large chest, arm settled over his stomach, her ear against his heartbeat, and she looked...at peace. Truly relaxed, all the tension loose from her body like an idle, well-fed cat. He could see the content smile around her tusks, and his heart melted with love for her. He wanted to see that expression, this relaxation more often. She was gorgeous when she was the Huntmaster and in battle, yes, but the troll was equally as beautiful at contented rest, and Khadgar felt the desire to make her happy forever. Especially in such grim times.

And that’s when the idea popped into his head.

“Draggka?” He asked softly.

“Mmm?” She hummed back, the slight flick of her ear the only indication that she was listening.

“Could you teach me Zandali?”

It only took a second for the entire mood to change. Tension tightened into Draggka’s body like an arrow loosed from her bow, chilling the warmth from the room. She lifted her head up to look him straight in the eyes, and Khadgar was convinced his heart had suddenly been dunked into a bucket of icy water when he saw her stony expression.

“Ya want me to do what?” She asked - not unkindly, but the edge of a demand was clear in her voice.

“I, I-I was just wondering i-if you could teach me s-some Zandali.” Khadgar stuttered. _What did I do wrong? Did I say it incorrectly?_

“No.” Was the short, sharp response, Draggka shifting to sit upright, half-turning away from him. 

Usually, the mage would accept this refusal and move on, but something nagged at him. She’d usually been forthcoming to most of his questions about troll-kind. Of their beliefs, their Loa, their history, even of the rapid cultural shift that occurred in the Darkspear when they joined the Horde. So why was the troll language suddenly such a sticking point? He knew of it, and had seen it written in Draggka’s handwriting numerous time, so if she wanted to hide its existence, the hunter was doing a less than stellar job at it.

“Why not?” He asked, tilting his head to the side. She blinked at him, her eyebrows furrowing slightly.

“What’d ya mean?”

“Well,” Khadgar shifted to sit more upright in the bed, “you’ve already told me a lot about your people. Your customs, the Loa, your history. I’ve heard you speak Zandali, and I’ve seen it written down. I-Is there something I missed? Why would learning your language be off limits if everything else isn’t?”

The troll looked away from him, her ears moving lower and closer to her head in a gesture Khadgar assumed was defensive avoidance and or annoyance. Spike’s eyes were now open, and he watched them silently from the floor, Khadgar unable to read the raptor’s ‘expression’.

“It be forbidden to teach not-trolls Zandali.” She answered flatly.

“Unsurprising, considering how insular your people are.” He nodded. “But...” He cocked his head, his eyes tracing over her body. “What are you afraid of?”

That got a response, her ears dropping lower before she turned back to him.

“If...if de other trolls be hearing ya speak Zandali, dey’ll know it be me da taught ya. Or dey’ll find out. Dey- I already not be normal, ‘cos I been mostly raised outside da Darkspear, an’ cos I be telling ya what I did.” She wrapped her arms around herself, Spike lifting his head up and rumbling softly in his throat. “Dis...” She trailed off, shaking her head, and Khadgar immediately regretted prodding the answer out of her.

“W...Would they really make you an outcast over this?” He asked softly, resisting the urge to reach for the hunter, even to comfort her. He doubted she’d want his touch right now.

“I...I don’t know.” Draggka admitted, reaching to pet Spike’s head, the raptor closing his eyes and leaning into her touch.

An uncomfortable silence settled around them, Khadgar wishing he didn’t keep constantly shoving his feet into his mouth, and that he could go back and stop himself. Both from asking the question, and also from urging on the answer to ‘why’.

After a moment, Draggka looked to him, and asked:

“Why do ya want to learn it so badly?”

The archmage almost winced at the question. Did she really feel like he’d been needling her? A part of him wanted to tell her that it didn’t matter if it was going to upset her, but he knew that would only irritate her further. 

“Because I...Well.” Khadgar shifted, rubbing the back of his neck. “Listen to us, Draggka. Common is my native language, but Zandali is yours. You’re always talking to me in a second language, whilst I just rest on my laurels and speak the tongue I was born with. I just figured...I felt it is - was - unfair to put the onus on you all the time. I wanted to learn Zandali, so it’d be me speaking a second tongue for once.”

Another long silence, yet slightly less uncomfortable as the one before, and this time, Draggka was looking at him. Her orange eyes were wide with surprise, and her ears had perked up from their once dour position. Her hand on Spike’s head had stilled, yet the raptor seemed not to mind, his blue eyes lazily half-open. The mage counted the fact the beast didn’t seem to want to bite his face off was a good thing, and that this situation could be salvaged.

“Ya want to learn Zandali...fer me?” Draggka’s voice was soft, almost barely audible, incredulity written all over her face. It occurred to Khadgar that she’d probably not even considered it as his motive.

“Yes.” He nodded, shifting closer to her, cupping her spare hand in his own. “I love to hear you speak Zandali. I don’t know what others say about it, but to me it seems almost...lyrical. To hear you speak it, and understand it too? It would be wonderful.” He smiled warmly, then chuckled softly. “I doubt I’d sound so tuneful at first, and I’m fairly certain you’ll laugh at me at least once or twice. But it would be worth it, I’m sure.” Draggka glanced away from him, her ears drooping slightly, yet her hand stayed in his. “You’re still worried about getting in trouble.” Khadgar rumbled softly.

The troll nodded, not looking up at him. Spike whined softly, resting his head on her leg.

“I were told never to teach others our tongue. Not even other members of da Horde,” she said. 

“Why not?” Khadgar asked gently, tracing his thumb over her knuckles.

“I...” She frowned, eyes flicking back and forth in thought. “I...tink it be someting to do wit it being a troll ting? Dat it be ours alone?”

“Why would Zandali be anything but a troll thing?” Khadgar asked. Draggka looked back to him with mild befuddlement. “If I learn to speak it, it doesn’t become any less troll, does it? Orcish is still Orcish when you or I speak it. I could speak Thalassian, yet people would still consider it as the tongue of the high elves that a human just so happens to be speaking. In fact, some would find that an impressive feat, that a human could do so.”

The hunter glanced away again, but her amber eyes were thoughtful this time, her head canting slightly to the side as she chewed over his words. The archmage wondered if it was a form of arrogance that made the trolls so insular; an arrogance that outsiders couldn’t or didn’t deserve to understand their ways. A haughtiness that their elven descendents had inherited, though he figured it would be best to keep this observation to himself, even if Draggka was occasionally critical of her people.

He did, however, add:

“But, if it will reassure you, I promise never to breathe a word of Zandali in front of any troll but you. It is the reason I wish to learn it in the first place.” He smiled earnestly.

After a moment, Draggka gave a little sigh.

“Okay, den. But never in front of another troll.” She gave him a look as sharp as one of her arrows. “Not even my brudder.”

“I doubt he would mind, but I promise.” Khadgar said, lifting a hand from hers to swear over his chest. “The only troll I will speak Zandali in front of is you.”

“Tank you.” Draggka smiled, her eyes brightening, and her other hand moving to join the first, squeezing Khadgar’s hand. Spike looked on calmly, contented the his two packmates were getting on again.

A brief comfortable silence, Khadgar tracing the grooves and callouses on Draggka’s fingers.

“So...” He ventured. “When do lessons begin?”

His smile quickly became a grin as his lover cursed, swatting at him playfully.

“I don’t know!” She cried. “I not be havin’ to teach anyone anyting before! ‘Specially not language!”

“I have some texts with me about learning Thalassian.” Khadgar said. “Perhaps the lessons in these would give you a guide on how to teach me?” He tilted his head, rubbing his chin as he tried to recall the contents. “Common structure is to teach basic greetings and farewells, as well as grammar rules and other language quirks, slowly building up to complex sentences in past and future tenses, if memory serves.”

Draggka blinked owlishly at him.

“Dat...be a lot.”

“We don’t need to aim so high at first.” Khadgar smiled, squeezing her hand reassuringly. “For starters, I just want to learn how to say ‘hello’, and then move into compliments...”

He tried not to grin when Draggka narrowed her eyes at him.

“Did you just want to learn Zandali just to flirt wit me?” She asked, in that way which made Khadgar feel he’d become pinned in a corner, by an antsy raptor.

“Ah, well-” He chuckled nervously, heat rising into his face as the troll’s eyebrow arched. Spike’s soft chuffing didn’t help either. “Ye-es? Sort of? Not entirely!” He ran a hand through his silver hair, trying to ignore Draggka folding her arms, or the slight smug smile on her face as she watched him try to dig his way out of his hole. “I stand by wanting to have a conversation with you in your native tongue. But I do want to whisper sweet nothings into your ear with it as well.” The archmage flashed her a winning smile, plus a little bit of a charming look to his eyes. “I do know how much you love my voice...”

The hunter sighed with exasperation, shaking her head. 

“Ya be da worst sometimes, ya know.”

Khadgar chuckled, taking her hands again as he saw the fondness glittering in her eyes.

“But that’s why you love me, right?”

Draggka chuckled too.

“Yeah. Dat be why, Ba’la.”

And with that, she pulled him into a kiss.


End file.
